According to the Wall Street Journal, which quoted "people familiar with the matter," in recent months Microsoft and Nokia "flirted with the idea of making a joint bid for Research In Motion." The status of the talks is uncertain, but the flicker of interest in RIM was enough to temporarily draw the interest of investors on Wall Street.

So are the rumors for real? Well, take them with a grain of salt, Paul R. LaMonica writes over at CNN.

"The leaked reports about RIM smack of desperation – either from investors long the stock doing anything they can to pump it up or bankers hoping to scrounge up some merger advisory fees," LaMonica writes. He goes on to quote Michael Pytosh, a portfolio manager with the ING Growth and Income Fund, who frames the whispers as 'a classic case' of investment bankers "smelling the chum in the water."